My last collection of poetry was published more than 25 years ago.Since then, I've written plays for radio and the stage, novels, and histories. But this new collection comes as something of a surprise even to me. I hope that it will be the first of many. There are poems old and new here, one or two of which have already been published in magazines and anthologies including a poem called Thread, which was published in Antonia Fraser's anthology of Scottish Love Poetry. There are previously unpublished recollections of time spent in Finland and Poland And there are poems which reflect my passion for vintage perfumes and textiles, sensual, tactile things and how they can serve to reawaken memories as well as reminding us of milestones in our lives. Incidentally, if anyone is wondering about the cover picture, it's a piece of very old Chinese embroidery, slightly timeworn and rather beautiful - I'm hoping it's appropriate to the collection itself!

Meanwhile, just to give you a flavour, here's an example:

MIDNIGHT SUN

Is it day or night?The city streetsclasp the heat fast andlate drunks tumble home to sleep.

Is it day or night?In the warm forestmarsh marigolds jostle for a place,small lilies crouch in hooded green,confused thrushes chatterlike shattered glass.

Is it day or night?Small creatures furrowlightly on the lake inrandom, purposeful lines.Mosquitoes pilot in and bite.Black beetles toddle to thewater’s edge.The surface is streaked withpollen, soft as a man’s hair.

Is it night or day?The sun that makes a narrow anglewith the lake’s thin lineconsiders for a momentalong the slendervery rim of the darkand rises again.

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The Mock Duckling said…

Good luck with that. It looks and sounds great. I am amazed how many people on the web seem to be into writing and embroideries/tapestry. Yarns and yarns eh?

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